Babies
Current mood: aggravated
Category: News and Politics

Babies are great.  They're (more often than not) adorable, fun, and entertaining. 

I have 3 godkids.  One of them is my niece, who will be 2 months old next week.  The other two are children of one of my best friends, and they are 3 and 5 years old.  Absolutely great kids.

I have friends who have little ones.  Most of the children I have come across are absolutely wonderful little angels (it doesn't hurt that they have great parents).

I completely respect, and often encourage a woman's right to decide to have a child.  If they're raised properly and the parents actually care about them, they tend to grow up to be responsible, productive members of society.

However, not all of us need kids at the moment.  Not all of us neccessarily want them now (some people intend to never have children).  Some people just shouldn't reproduce at all.

Some people believe birth control is wrong.  Well, that's a personal issue.  A personal belief that should be taken up with their partner.  It should not be made into a political issue.  It is a PRIVATE MATTER.  The government has no right to intrude into my bedroom to tell me what brand of condom to use, or to tell me I can no longer take birth control pills. 

Now, some people also believe abortion is wrong (oddly, most of these people are male.  This means they will never be directly faced with the consequences, either way, of this decision.  Funny, that). 

They'll support this belief with scripture (though what the bible DOES say about the unborn is rather interesting here.  I'd have to look up the exact verse, but it mentions punishment for a man who attacks a pregnant woman.  If the fetus survives, the man pays a small amount of money to the woman for his crime.  However, if the fetus is miscarried as a result of the attack, the man must pay a greater amount of money TO THE WOMAN HE ATTACKED.  This means that the fetus is, according to this verse, the property of the woman--not her husbsand.  Just something to consider...), with odd ways of looking at existing laws, and with the fact that abortion wasn't always legal.

Well, neither was Protestantism.  Neither was bi-racial marriage.  Both of these issues were "hot-button" issues of their respective times, and we see how that turned out.  A person can be any branch of Christianity (or, *gasp* any other religion) they so choose.  People can marry people whose skin tone isn't an exact match to theirs (oh no, there goes the chance of passing down a genetic defect created by mating too often with other offspring of one's own ancestors.  What is the world coming to?).  Once upon a time, these things were considered immoral. 

Of course, about 50 years ago, I'd have been called a "hussy" or worse because I wear pants.  Go figure.

Is this going to change anyone's view ..ion?  Probably not.  Most likely, the men of the religious right will continue to justify their persecution of my rights by insisting that "Jesus told them to."  It doesn't matter that he also said that if a town (my understanding is that this extends to cover individuals and/or countries as well) doesn't agree with what you are preaching, you should "brush the dust off your sandals and walk away" (I'm paraphrasing, but you get the idea.  Don't keep pushing if someone's not buying).

No, I don't see it changing anyone's view, but I felt like writing it.  I'm constantly amused by the anti-choicers denouncing me as a "selfish child-hater."  Who is really selfish in this?  They'll push their views on you all day, but their compassion extends only to the moment the child takes its first breath.  Once the mother has given birth, they're in the clear.  I don't see these people out adopting children from orphanages.  They're not out fighting for the rights of living children.  NO, in general, they waste all their time and efforts on the unborn.  They don't give a damn about what happens afterwords.

So I (and others who agree with me) become labeled "child-haters," simply because we think of things like the quality of life the child will have, who will provide for the child (money, affection, education, etc), what chances will the child have after it's born, or what are the chances that the fetus will even survive long enough to be born? 

We think about the woman carrying the fetus.  Will she survive the pregnancy?  Often health is an issue that determines a woman's choice to have an abortion.  Doctors tend not to force people to have an abortion, even if it's certain that the woman will die if she continues the pregnancy.

What if she's a rape victim?  To many anti-choicers, this is almost a dilemma.  Many anti-choicers tend to blame the woman for getting pregnant in the first place (I've actually been told "if she'd kept her damn legs shut, it wouldn't have happened."  Huh, wonder how she got pregnant without a man between those legs...Amazing!  Love how the male is free of blame, here), but a rape, well, that's non-consentual. 

So, they handle it in a few different ways.  There are the die-hards, who insist the woman did SOMETHING to get herself raped (you know, the whole "she shouldn't have dressed like that" excuse.  I wonder how an 80-year-old or a 2-week-old dresses provactively...that diaper is so sexy!).  They still insist it's the woman's "fault."

Then you have the slightly more moderate ones (I think) who insist that the woman should just carry the fetus and give it away for adoption because "if she has an abortion, it's making her the agressor.  She's no longer the victim."  Wow, I wonder how many of these crazies have been raped.  I'm lucky, I never got pregnant any of the multiple times I've been raped.  I still have flashbacks about those incidents, and I've developed a lovely case of PTSD from it.  I can only imagine what it must be like to find out that not only did a man violate me forcefully/violently, but I'm now stuck with his child.  Never mind the fact that he could have given me a disease.  No, now I'm stuck with his genetic material fused to mine.  How sick.

It's bad enough to relive it without having a constant reminder (I do have some of those, but scars aren't babies, now, are they?).  What kind of monster asks a woman to let this "man"'s legacy live on inside of her-for nine months-and then bring it painfully into the world, even if you're not asking her to raise it?  Now, if it's her own morals that cause her to decide to keep it, more power to her.  But for ANYONE other than her to make that decision, is absolutely horriffic.  Who do they think they are, asking that of someone?

A blessed few are "kind enough" to grant this as an exception to their ideal anti-abortion laws.  How nice of them.

What if she simply cannot handle it, mentally/emotionally?  Again, you have the die-hards who insist that she "spread her legs" so she should deal with the consequences.  Again, the responsibility of the man involved is never mentioned.  Wonder why that is?  Well, the embryo doesn't need the man for anything more than genetic material, not really.  It does need the woman's body in order to leech nutritients and vitamins, to grow, to eliminate waste, etc, for aprox. 9 months.  After that, it needs a person to feed it, change it, wash it, etc. 

Isn't it better for the possible-child in question to not be exposed to someone who cannot handle taking care of a child?  Isn't it better for the child not to live than to die by mommy's hand?  Hell, even if she gives it up for adoption, many mental illnesses are genetic.  Again, none of this matters to the anti-abortionists.

So, I'm a "child-hater" to these people, because I think of more than making sure the baby takes it's first breath.  I think of the other people involved.  I think of the child's well-being.  It doesn't matter that I do, in fact, love quite a few children, many of whom aren't even related to me.  I care very much about these children, and about their future.  None of that matters.

No, they'll keep building the straw man who hates babies and morals and all forms of spirituality, and they'll keep beating him with arguments that often couldn't stand up to a small child breathing on them.  And people will listen to them and believe them.  They'll call me a "child hater" and set up political shop inside my uterus and ovaries.  They'll ignore the facts, and fight their unjust fight.

Here's hoping they never win.

Currently listening : Indestructible Special Edition

8:13 PM - 2 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Absolutely Amazing
Category: Life

I've been blogging on Myspace for at least two years now.  I'd always hoped that one of my blogs would make it to the top blogs list.  That I would have written something worthy of being read by a multitude of people.

That sort of happened today.  I mean, one of my blogs did make it to 82 (or 83, I'm not sure. somewhere in there) on the Religion and Philosophy section.  However, I can hardly think of a less worthy blog to have made it that far.

I mean, where are my lectures on gay rights?  ..ion?  On politics?  On basic human rights?  Where are my important blogs?

They're still here, in the archives if anyone is extremely bored (or for some strange reason, someone really likes my work...).  But it was my short rant about some little pissant that made it to the top blogs.  And sadly, I left a comment in response to a friend's comment that will likely lead people to the pissant's blog, thereby keeping him on the top blogs list as well. 

WTF?

That really wasn't the point, there.  I was just venting out of disbelief and annoyance at the idea of someone so stupid and closed-minded that they think they "pwnd" me (wtf, what special person uses that term anymore outside of gaming, anyway?), when in reality he's just too stupid to understand the point's I've made.

And I really don't expect the little boy to understand the concept of a religion based on the teachings of religions that have been around far longer than his religion. *sigh* What the hell...

That's another thing, why couldn't it have been one of my blogs about Wicca?  It's so important to spread understanding of Wicca to the masses.  No, I don't want to convert anyone.  I don't care what the hell anyone believes as long as they don't cram it down my throat with a book they've never bothered to read.   I'm just tired of people saying "now, that's satan worship, isn't it?" or "Well, that's an evil religion.  You're going to hell." 

Not that really mind the "going to hell part."  I mean, that's what they're typically trained to believe:  that everyone that isn't Christian is going to hell.  But any person with 2 working brain cells that has bothered to learn anything about my religion can see that it's anything but evil. *sigh, again*

Things like that, or like people saying that Wes cannot possibly be a good Christian because he's dating a non-Christian (when in reality, he's a better Christian than these hypocrites could ever hope to be), really piss me off.  I know that these people feel a need to seem important, and that they can't do it any other way than by trying to knock others down, but come on!!!

Who would Jesus bad-mouth?

That being said, I'm done with this rant-blog.  I'm just amazed that none of my more important blogs were able to migrate to the top blogs, but my tiny rant about a dumbass pissant did.  One of those "wtf" moments....

Thanks for reading, lovely faithful readers.  You guys know who you are, and I appreciate that you care enough to keep coming back :)

2:41 PM - 5 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Sigh
Category: Religion and Philosophy

So this flea on the ass of society thinks he "pwnd" me (I'm guessing that's l33t speak for "I won the debate"?), simply because I have neither the time nor the patience to explain to him the multitude of errors in his reasoning/arguments.

Silly me, I defended a group of people from ludicris slander.

*sigh*

What else is new?

10:11 PM - 3 Comments - 1 Kudos - Add Comment

Death wish that I’d happily grant...
Current mood: enraged
Category: Life

I'll start at the beginning, because I can't remember how much I've written about and how much I've left out.

So, in the beginning, there was nothing, until...

Wait, no, wrong story.

At the beginning, my sister was friends with a schoolmate of mine, Carla, who worked at a biker bar not far from my house.  She used to go see Carla all the time, and this guy that worked there took an interest.  So, Carla introduced the dishwasher of Kemosabe's to my sister.

Aww.

They got along far too well for my taste at first, and soon Ronnie was spending every day at my house, sleeping in my sister's bed.  At times, he was actually asleep.  Despite my stepfather's (and my own) efforts, Ronnie could not be dislodged from my house or my sister.  Meanwhile, mom was in the hospital undergoing surgery after surgery, etc.

Ronnie has a super power (or is that "stupid power"?).  He can make intelligent people fall for his crap.  He can make them believe him without checking the facts readily avaliable that prove he's wrong (and a moron).  He made my sister believe that having spinal meningitis as an infant can make a person sterile.

Yet, some dark place in her mind did not fully accept what he said to be true.  She ended up getting the morning after pill at least 2 times.  Remember Carla?  Yeah, that's who took her to get it.

Finally, I open my front door one day to find one of Stef's good friends from school; a girl she'd known since they were in 2nd grade.  The girl was crying and wanted to know where Stef was so she could "talk some sense into her."  "What's going on?" I asked.

She's pregnant, and she's keeping Ronnie's baby.

WTF? (now, understand that I love my niece to death, but also understand that Stef turned 18 right before she told us she was pregnant and then moved out.  Not exactly a great idea...) And we'd all been holding out hope that they were going to break up.  Hell, according to Ronnie's co-workers at the time, HE was holding out hope that they were going to break up.

Wes and I remember the arguments that ensued often before, during, and after the pregnancy.  We're pretty sure we know which night it was that Stef told Ronnie she was pregnant.  We heard semi-loud arguing, then stef said something quietly, then we heard "Ronnie!  Ronnie!  Ronnie, get back here!  Ronnie, come back!" Etc.

Did I mention Ronnie is a moron?  This is the guy who won't get his G.E.D. because he "knows he's smart, and doesn't need a paper to prove it to anyone." He's the guy who is proud that he's been fired from every department at A.C.T., "because everyone knows him there now." He can't do 2 things at once because he'll forget how to do both of them.

So he whisked her away to a run-down trailer, which he made her help him repair.  She asked me one day why she wasn't feeling well.  I told her if she hadn't spent the night in a freezing trailer in the middle of winter breathing in paint fumes while pregnant, she might feel better.

Fast-forward a couple of months.  Stef gets really sick one night.  Wes and I walked into my house and were greeted by mom, who said, "if anyone cares, Stef is at the hospital."  After suppressing the urge to punch her, I asked which hospital and if we needed to go be with her. 

Finally getting an answer, we took off in the direction of the hospital.  We met up with Stef there, and found that she'd been coughing up blood.  Apparently that wasn't enough of an emergency for Ronnie to get up and drive his then-6-months-pregnant girlfriend to the hospital.  He wanted to wait until morning.

Continued incidents of jackassery were again tolerated.  I kept quiet, because whenever people in my family would speak badly of him, he found ways to keep Stef (and later the baby) away from those who didn't like him.  Mostly my grandparents, but my stepdad and others have suffered because of this.  Only mom and I had the patience to pretend we could tolerate him.

Stef was almost to her due date when she sent me a text one night asking what I was up to.  She was in a lot of pain, mostly from knots in her back that her "loving, attentive" boyfriend-thing couldn't be bothered to do anything about, and she couldn't get comfortable (as anyone who has ever had a child can tell you, it is apparently NOT the most comfortable condition to be 8-9 months pregnant...).  I told her to wake his dumb ass up.  He didn't have a job (in fact, Stef worked more during the pregnancy than Ronnie has the entire relationship), and spent his days smoking pot.  He refused to look for a job, so he could "work on his G.E.D., but wasn't really doing anything at all.

So she tried to wake him up. 

The proper response:  "Oh, babe, I'm sorry you're hurting.  Let me help you.  What can I do?"

The Ronnie response:  "What the hell do you want?  I don't need this shit.  I need my sleep.  I'm so busy all the time.  I'm so stressed.  I don't need your crap on top of it all.  Get the hell out of here."  (Busy, yep.  No job, spends all day smoking pot.  Terribly hectic life, there).

So she did.  She came to my house and cried and told mom, Wes, and me that she should have listened and she deserved better.  That she'd learn from this.

Stupid me, I thought she'd finally woken up.  She slept for a few hours at our house, then went back to the falling-down trailer.

The day the baby was born, mom, Stef, Ronnie, and I were the only ones in the delivery room.  I was there to see my niece being born, to support Stef, and to film the birth.  Ronnie was supposed to be helping Stef with her labor, and mom was her labor coach. 

Stef didn't want to be touched at times.  Considering she did the whole thing without any medicine at all, I think she was entitled to that.  She would shake her head if she didn't want anyone to touch her.  Mom and I picked up on that, and only offered our hands when she was starting to have a contraction, in case she wanted to squeeze someone's hand.  Ronnie, the moron, couldn't even pick up on blatent visual cues like body language.  He kept trying to hold her when she didn't want it, kept talking when she wanted quiet.

He only cares about himself, and I'm quite tired of it.

The night Olivia was born, Ronnie started sleeping on his "good ear," so he couldn't hear the baby crying, nor could he hear Stef asking him to help her care for their child.

He has complained every single time she's asked him for help.  He still didn't have a job, but a simple task, such as bringing her a bottle of water, was "too much" and "added to his stress."

He was supposed to find a job within a week after Olivia was born.  He just found one a week ago.  Olivia will be 2 months old in 9 days.

He was supposed to trade his broken truck for a car to get to the job he didn't have.  He traded it instead for computer parts (mostly ram) and some games, most of which he could download from the internet for free.

Still, I held my tongue and waited for her to wake up and see the idiot she was with for who and what he is.

Until about 3 weeks ago.  Stef and Ronnie were arguing, as usual.  This time, because Captain Stupidity lost the baby's vitamins.  (I swear to the goddess, it's like she mated with our biological father...).  Exasperated, Stef said that she was going to take the baby and go out for a while while they both calmed down (so they wouldn't be fighting anymore).  Ronnie couldn't accept that, and blocked her way.  She asked him to move several times, to no avail.  Finally, she tried to physically move him.

His response was to throw her into the nearest wall.  Like any normal person, she got pissed and tried to shove him back.  He then threw her to the floor and stomped on her.  She still has the bruises all down her leg.  It hurts her to walk.

Thankfully, my niece was not being held by either of them at the time.  She is fine.  Stef grabbed Olivia, got in the car, and left.  On her way out, Ronnie said that he wanted to say good-bye to his daughter, because "I love her, but I don't care about you."  He also called her a fat cow and several other names.  I figure at least she can lose the baby weight.  He'll always be a goddamned idiot. 

She called me, asking if I was home.  Then she came over and told mom and me what had happened. 

Of course, I was pissed (I still am).  Wes rounded up some of our friends, got one of them to bring his pickup, and we went to the trailer to get Stef and Olivia whatever they'd need to live at my house.  Ronnie was not there, luckily for him, because it would not have been pretty if he was.

Since that day, Stef has been staying at my house with Olivia.  Ronnie calls with his weak-ass excuses ("I'm sorry I hurt you, but if you hadn't made me angry...", "It makes no sense for you to live at your mom's house.  How am I going to get to work?"-I told her we could give him some leggo wheels for the computer-  etc). He goes back and forth between being pseudo-sorry and blaming her for his every problem.  And he makes his stupid excuses for everything from not quitting smoking to hurting her to not keeping a steady job.

So, I figure he has a death wish.  I'd be more than happy to be his fairy godmother on that one...I just have to figure out how to get Stef to wake the hell up.

Just thought I'd share that with you.  And if a dead Ronnie pops up I, um, didn't do it...

4:18 PM - 2 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Airsoft in the middle of nowhere...
Current mood: amused
Category: Games

So yeah, yesterday we went to an airsoft game in the middle of nowhere, a.k.a. Rogersville, TN. 

I'm sure Wes will post a blog with the more important technical details, so I'll just tell you  my "the little girl with just a pistol" version

Odd thought I just had.  I may not have ever mentioned team Yakauza before in my blogs (how sad).  We're an airsoft team.  So, um, yeah, now I've mentioned team Yakauza :P   Again, go to my lovely boyfriend's page for more coherent details about the team and the only sport I've actually gotten excited about playing (other than football, which mom quickly stamped out...)

The first game was interesting.  I started with Wes, Lee, Dave, and a guy named Todd from team R.A.T.S.  We got to wander around in a scraggly forest to find our way to the other team and shoot them.  It was cute, because they didn't bother to tell us there was a time limit until after the game was over.

It was ok, though. Poor Dave got caught in the crossfire between a Saw and some other overpowered machine gun.  The rest of us backed off and while we were trying to figure out what to do next, I heard Tex's cricket call.  The first few times, no one listened to me when I said "that's Tex," but finally Wes figured it out and we met up with Tex, who led us around the enemy through the scraggle-woods.  We almost had them, when they started yelling that the game was over.

Boo.

But the second game was better :)  The other team complained at first, because by that time several people had gone home and the teams were down to 7 vs 8.  But they looked at me and said, "well, she's just a GIRL with a pistol, it'll be ok."  Famous last words, and I made them eat them...By the way, I don't think I mentioned that my little pistol is a 50 Cal, gas-powered Desert Eagle?

Yeah.

So the game was a strange version of capture the flag, except we had to get our flag to the enemy base and put it up next to their flag.  Our "base" was an overturned fridge from Pizza Hut.  Interestingly, it had plenty of room for a little girl with a pistol to sit inside, unseen, guarding the flag.

The game lasted something like 3 hours.  3 hours of me sitting in the fridge watching the flag and talking to whomever was hiding with me at the base at the time.  The guys were doing a great job of keeping the other team back, which takes ammo, so I ended up spending most of my time refilling their mags.  And fighting off yellow jackets....

Unfortunately, we didn't realize that the other team played by a different set of rules from what we are used to.  Typically, you are "out" or "hit" if you are hit anywhere with a b.b.  Their rules, however, say that you are only out if you are hit two times in the chest or head; no limb shots.  Team Yakauza calls all their shots, no matter what. 

This leads to a shortage of my team on the field.  I'm still in the fridge, Lee is crouching near me, picking people off with his sniper rifle, and the Todd guy is in the creek bed across from us.  I'm not sure what happened to the others at that point.  So an enemy comes over, and Todd tells him he's out of ammo (basically, "don't shoot me, I might as well be out.  I am no threat.").  What does the guy do?  Opens fire on him, full auto.  WTF?  This is from the other side of the fridge I'm in, by the way. 

So, Lee stands up, holds his hands up, and says, "I'm out, don't shoot me." This is sort of him conceeding to them that yes, they could have shot him before he could shoot them, and he didn't want to get shot from 2 feet away.  It's the reverse of a "safety kill."

What is a "safety kill"?  Well kids, it's what happened next...

One of them jumped over the fridge, the other two came around the side.  They were getting ready to go after the flag, when one of them turned and saw me pointing my "little pistol" at them.

"Bang-bang, motherf*ckers.  You're dead.  Get the hell out of my base."

That's a safety kill.  Taking them out without firing a single shot, but they know you easily could have.  To be more precise, that was 3 safety kills at once .

They later told my teammates that I'm a "sneaky bitch."  Apparently they thought I was running around, shooting at them like everyone else.  It hadn't occured to them that someone might actually hide inside the fridge.

So yesterday, I got 3 kills and didn't die once.  Sounds like a good day to me...

Although, I was playing in a tank top, so I did get sunburned for my efforts

3:43 PM - 2 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Saddened (with corrected misinformation...)
Current mood: betrayed
Category: Religion and Philosophy

**(August 5) TodayI was informed by a friend and former boy scout that apparently it is NOT boy scout policy to discriminate on the basis of religion.  Perhaps that particular troop leader was making excuses for his prejudice?  At any rate, I apologize to the organization and anyone who may have been offended or misinformed by my mistake.**

A few things today really made me think more than usual about how many of us are repressed due to fundamentalist nutjobs.  Not exactly a nice way to put it, but the situation is not nice in the first place, and I know that were it up to real Christians (not the damned hypocrites), these things wouldn't be happening.   So, I do not blame Christianity as a whole, but I do blame the disgustingly vast number of evil people who label themselves such (again, not the real believers, the ones who do it for show or whatever other strange reason...).

1)  I was watching CNN earlier, and there was a preacher actually pushing to FURTHER merge church and state.  Of course, the label under him stated that he wanted to connect RELIGION and government (which is still a fairly bad idea, whatever flavor religion it happens to be), because as we all know, to the average American, there is only one religion.   The rest of us are just nuts...

So that was bad enough, but the guy compared HIV/AIDS victims to lepers.  WTF?  Yeah, because if I hug someone with HIV, I'll catch it and my body will develop sores, my skin will rot off slowly, and my hands will form into talon-like claws, because I'll be a leper.  Wow. 

I can only hope that was his half-assed attempt to discuss prejudice against people with HIV/AIDS, but it was still a very inappropriate comment to make.

2) The other thing that made me stop to think:  I was reading a friend's blog (he goes by Dangerous Talk: Fighting the Religious Right), and someone left a comment with an extremely disturbing piece of information. . .

Did you know that you can't join the Boy Scouts unless you're Christian?  At least, that is what the father of a boy who was undecided about his religious beliefs was told by his local troop leader.

Granted, on first glance, it doesn't seem that big of a deal.  I mean, geez, I'm female and a little old to join any form of the "scouts."    But why does a child's religion matter to anyone outside of his family?  Why does it matter enough to make an outcast of a little boy, simply because he doesn't necessarily believe the same things that the others were brought up to believe?

And think about the laws we have to follow because of a religion we don't believe in.  If I want to buy alcohol, I damn well better not want to get it on a Sunday because it's against the law.  Again, WHY?  There's no logical basis for this.  There's no link between drinking on Sunday and worsened consequences when compared with drinking the rest of the week. 

Tobacco is sold 24/7.  There's no time limit on when you can buy cigarettes! 

Gay marriage:  The only argument I've heard against it is based on religion.  Mostly Christianity, though I'd imagine the Muslims aren't too keen on the idea, either.  As I've said a million times, however, two men getting married isn't going to damage the sanctity of my marriage in the least.

How do I know that?  Hell, I know plenty of gay people who are now dating.  Meanwhile, I'm dating Wes (in case anyone's unsure, he's the male in the picture with me-I'm the female...).  No one's relationship interferes with ours.  Why?   Because we don't let it happen.  Why the hell not let people be with who they love?  And leaving love out of the equation, (because let's face it, love has little to do with marriage nowadays) everyone deserves the benefits that come from a legally recognized marriage.  Tax breaks, healthcare, inheritance, recognition as a legal guardian for your spouse's children, and recognition as a family member in emergency situations are just a few of these benefits.

No group has a monopoly on marriage.  Not my religion, not Christians, not Muslims, Hindus, Atheists, gays, straights, black, white, purple....we're all people, damnit, and we all have rights.  This garbage the religious radicals are spouting about homosexuals is as ridiculous as me saying that two Christians getting married defiles the sanctity of the marriage I intend to have in the future.

It doesn't, because marriage is a social institution, not a religious one.

There will never be a point in my lifetime that I will be able to run for any political office.  Why?  Because people don't care if I want to do what's best for them and will fight for their rights.  They don't care if I'm educated enough for the position, or if I'm qualified (see previous blog about "he's a good doctor, you should make him a congressman...").  No, all the typical American sees in a potential candidate is "what's their stance abort-ion, (for some reason, it won't let me type the word in full, it deletes the first half of the word)" and "are they Christian."  It really gets to me, because even my beloved Democratic party does this.  Sadly, when it gets down to it, we all have to play the game once in a while.

I hate that.  It disgusts me.  Why is the average American so short-sighted?   Why so shallow?  Why so stupid?

Even in schools, they fight to keep creationism as a "scientific explanation" for how life began.  Creationism is a religious belief, it doesn't belong in a classroom.  If you want your kids to believe god(s) created the world, teach it to them on your own time and don't involve the other poor kids in what should be your PERSONAL BELIEFS.  Personally, I believe it was a group effort of many gods from different pantheons, but I don't march down to the schoolboard and demand they offer my belief as an alternative option for how life came to be.

No, I wish they'd leave it at "at present, the Big Bang Theory is the accepted, though as yet unproven, scientific theory for how the world came into being."  Why?  Because it's the ONLY actually SCIENTIFIC idea about how life began.  Jesus wasn't a scientist.  Neither was Moses, or Paul, or anyone who had anything to do with putting together  the bible (sorry kids, not even King James was a scientist...).  It's a belief, and should be respected as such, but not taught as science.

I'm looking, but if you see the time on this blog, you'll notice I should've been asleep hours ago :P   so I'll look another time to see what other laws we have that we shouldn't all be expected to follow because we don't all follow that religion.  Or, if anyone else can think of some, you're more than welcome to post them in comments...

Granted, there are those who may say "but what about commandments like 'thou shalt not kill,' or 'thou shalt not steal,' those are laws we have to follow..." Well, yes and no.  There's a difference between religious laws 'handed down from gods,' ("thou shalt have no other gods before me"--from the bible, or "Elder is the Lady's tree, burn it not or cursed you'll be"--from the Wiccan Rede, for those who didn't know) and basic morality built into most people who aren't psychologically damaged (don't kill people, it's bad for the species.  Don't lie, you wouldn't want to be lied to.  Don't steal from other people, or they may well steal from you.  Basics here, people).

Whatever you hold true spiritually, if you hold any spiritual beliefs at all, there are basics you can agree on.  Laws that are good for mankind and society.  The bible isn't the only place to find these, as they are BASIC LAWS THAT ARE GOOD FOR MANKIND AND SOCIETY.  There need be no religion to back them up.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm frustrated that radical religious crazies have found a "legal" way to force us to follow their religion.  I don't know (or care) if they're doing it out of a sense of fear that their god will punish them for other people's perceived sins, or if they think they're doing us some sort of favor, or what the hell their reasoning is....they have no right, but it continues to happen. 

Don't they realize that forcing beliefs on people only cheapens those beliefs?  That's a big reason I'd never try to convert anyone to Wicca.  A) many people would'nt understand even the basic concepts and B) I don't want the beauty of it cheapened by even more casual 'worshippers.'  It's bad enough to see books like "Love spells for the Teenage Witch." it completely misses the point.

As does forcing people to obey ridiculous lesser laws of any religion in a country that has no national religion.  Tell ya what...I'll forgive them for missing the Sabbats, and they can let me buy alcohol whenever the hell I please. 

Currently reading : His Dark Materials Trilogy (The Golden Compass; The Subtle Knife; The Amber Spyglass) By Philip Pullman Release date: 2003-09-23

12:24 PM - 4 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

don’t assume your yard is safe...
Category: Life

If there are strange holes in your yard, and you have a lot of "yellowjacket"-looking flying insects flying around....avoid them like the plague, then drown them in gasoline at night while they sleep!

I got stung by a ground hornet today.  It hurts... 

So, yeah...death to the ground hornets.  They don't seem to serve any real purpose anyway. 

Little buggars

Currently listening : Indestructible Special Edition

8:30 PM - 2 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

I’m proud of Wes :)
Category: Life

He finally held my niece!

It started on Sunday (ok, technically it started on June 19, when she was born.  Or maybe 9 months before that?  Anyway, it started...) when he was playing video games and Stef and I were hanging out at his house.  I convinced him to let me put a folded blanket on his lap and let Olivia lay on it. 

Phase 1:  completed

Then, last night we were hanging out in my room, when we heard a knock at the door and a baby crying on the other side.  Stef couldn't get Olivia to chill, and thought maybe Aunt Chelle could help.

So, of course, Aunt Chelle takes the little one, and she calms down for a little bit, but she starts to get antsy again, so I said "Look, there's Uncle Wes!"  And she got really quiet and looked at him.  He held out his arms and said "oh, come here.  You just want to go to sleep, don't you?"

Phase 2:  completed

Holy crap, cute :)  Sadly I don't have any pictures, but I do have some from Sunday night...

So, yeah, he held her and rocked her and she slept for a little bit, but then she woke up again.  Finally her grandpa picked her up and she was out for the night, or at least until her next feeding, lol.

But yes, I am very proud of my Wes   And of little 'livy because she won over her uncle ;)

In other cool-but-odd baby news, she's taken to sucking on my hands.  Especially when she's hungry.  So I've got perma-baby-hickies on my hands, mostly on the sides of my thumbs.  Kind of strange, but just cool and hilarious enough that I keep letting her do it. 

I guess I'll have to break her of the habit eventually.  Couldn't you just see a 5-year-old needing to suck on her aunt's hand to deal with the stress of kindergarten?  *sigh*  My family is odd.

1:38 PM - 2 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

How disgusting
Category: News and Politics

Barack Obama, as some of you may know, is traveling overseas to get a better understanding of where America stands with the rest of the world.

He made a stop in Jerusalem, and on Friday he visited the famed Western Wall (apparently the last remaining piece of the biblical temple.   Supposedly the rebuilt version of Soloman's temple.  Very sacred place for Jews and Christians alike.  And people go there every year to leave hand-written notes for Yahweh in the cracks in the wall) in the pre-dawn hours.

All of that is fine and dandy, but apparently some jackass reporter stole the hand-written prayer that Obama left in the wall.  An Israeli newspaper published the note, which was simply a typical prayer asking for protection for his family and to be guided by his deity. 

Another newspaper ran a short article stating that it had received the note as well, but opted not to publish it.

The point here isn't "Oh my gods, look!  Barack Obama prayed!"  Nor is it "see, I told you he's not Muslim" or any other pointless nonsense that has been mated with politics for no reason. 

No, the point is that a prayer is something sacred between a person and his/her deity/ies.  It's not something to make a news story out of, or to be treated as common trash.  Thousands of people go to that wall each year, and most of them leave their prayers in the cracks in the wall.  They all assume that the sacred act will be treated as such; they don't expect some asshole to steal their prayer to make a quick buck. 

They expect that those papers will never be read by the eyes of men, and that when the wall is full, the rabbis in charge of the wall will gently collect the prayers and ceremoniously bury them all together.

Not that it'll appear in the local paper later that day.

The religious authorities in Israel are furious.  They railed against the newspaper and the Rabbi in charge of the Wall had a radio interview in which he discussed the inappropiate actions of the paper.

Unfortunately, while what the newspaper did is disguesting and wrong, it's not illegal.  I suppose the only reprocussions they'll  experience will be a "wagging of a finger" in their general direction. 

11:26 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Sick of brainless babble
Category: Religion and Philosophy

Obama is not the anti-christ.

Obama is not anti-christian, or anti-american, or whatever other ridiculous claims the general masses have been using to bash a man who is a damn good candidate.

He's Christian, not that that should have ANY BEARING WHATSOEVER on his electability. 

Yes, his preacher said "god damn America."  You know what?  If you look a bit deeper, you just might see the wisdom of those words.  This country is going to shit.  Instead of asking god (of any flavor, variety, religion, etc) to fix it, we ought to get off our asses and do something about it.  And I've always thought the absurdity of "god bless America" was astoundingly self-righteous.  Why not other places?  But that's another rant altogether.

Again, the personal/religious life of a candidate shouldn't be so damn important to the American-reality-tv-addict, but for some reason it is.

About the anti-Christ paranoia: What the hell is wrong with the people who believe this?  Honestly, I want to know, because there has to be some brain malady that can be fixed by the science they don't believe in.

Nostradamus's predictions were vague at best (and that's where people are getting their "proof" that he's the anti-christ).  "Ooh, but Nostradamus predicted 9-11."  No, he predicted that "something bad" would happen.  Oh no, ummm, please, not that... what?

People are always looking for an excuse for it to be the "end-times."  If we had an anti-christ, we just might be able to have that apocylapse these people are hoping for (you know, so hethens like me can stay here in "misery" until we're mercifully sent to hell, or something like that).  So, ta-da, suddenly they're accusing Obama of being the anti-christ (couldn't be Bush.  He's just too damn stupid).  I'll give half an ounce of credit to the whole concept the day trumpeting angels pour out of the sky and half my friends mysteriously disappear (because they're true Christians, unlike the mental cases who keep pointing fingers, etc). 

Also, I give Paul absolutely no credit, whatsoever.  I think he's extremely overrated, always have, always will.  It's his work more than any other books in the bible that encourages spousal abuse, fights against civil rights of any sort, and most of the other bad things many christians do without thinking.  Though it is good of him to put "I believe" when it's his personal opinion and he's not claiming to speak for Yahweh.

Don't even get me started on that last book of his...

So, to review:  Obama is not the anti-christ, and only idiots could believe that.  Obama is Christian, but that shouldn't matter to someone who is a truly informed voter and bases decisions on the IMPORTANT facts.  And people need to go do their homework before bashing someone they don't know, especially a person about whom so much information is readily available.  No excuse for being an ill-informed pig.

I did like that one satire, though, once I was informed it was such. ;)  The sad thing is, so many people actually believe the crap they're saying about him "cause that's what preacher-man said..."

One last statement before I'm done with this:  He doesn't kill babies; he just thinks I have the right to choose whether or not I reproduce.

K, now I'm done.  But don't think I won't return with more...

6:57 PM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Odd thoughts that live in my brain (part 1)
Category: Life

Time and time again, I've seen people I care about dealing with relationship problems.  I wonder a few things...

Do you think before you act?  Do you really know the person you attach yourself to (or are you at least willing/interested in getting to know that person)?  Are you considering the benefits and drawbacks of the possible relationship?  Etc.

Do you realize the attachment that can occur on a spiritual level with your partner?  I use the word "can," because some people aren't very spiritual and wouldn't neccessarily notice any attachment *shrug*  their loss.  I  love the bond I share with Wes.  It's a beautiful thing.  It can hurt sometimes, but that serves to let me know something's wrong if he won't show it on the outside. 

To nourish such an attachment, and then to let it die is a painful thing.  Sometimes it cannot be avoided.  Sometimes people outgrow eachother, or grow apart, or one person stops caring (a relationship cannot work one-sided).  Sometimes it is time to let it die. 

But sometimes you need to fight to keep the person you love.  No one ever said it was all going to be easy (or if they did, they lied or are dumb as hell).  Yeah, sometimes it's painful, sometimes it's difficult, but if it was worth it to begin the relationship, why isn't it worth it to keep it alive and healthy?

Considering the pros and cons of a relationship before seriously entering into it seems cold, but it's very neccessary.  Why be in a relationship "because he/she's nice/pretty/etc," and that's it?  Can you have a conversation with him/her?  Do you share any interests?  Are you at least somewhat attracted to the person on a physical level (who the hell dates someone they couldn't stand to look at?)?  Can they provide for you on an emotional, spiritual, financial, etc level (not neccessarily all three, perhaps you don't need it, but you get the point and it works BOTH WAYS)?

These are important questions you need to answer for any serious relationship.  You don't want to be stuck in an unhappy relationship, or end up with both parties going their separate ways and licking their figurative wounds.  It's just not pretty. 

Thinking is important.  Your mind needs to override passion or temporary desire.  It took a few tries, but I'm pretty sure I've finally gotten that through to myself. 

I hate to see people hurting.  If you find yourself unhappy with a relationship, ask yourself what drew you in in the first place?  Are you willing to try to fix it (why/why not)?  Is your partner in the dark (do they know you're not happy/what you're not happy about)?

Sometimes therapy is needed.  Sometimes you can work it out on your own or with the help of people you trust.  But you owe it to yourself to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it or prevent it in the future.

Just some random brain inhabitants of mine...

7:55 PM - 2 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Vive la Evolution!
Category: News and Politics

Sadly, this may make some people angry.  However, belief is not required for science to be accurate...

According to the St Louis Dispatch (discovered by my by way of the local paper, Johnson City Press), "Evolution is, by definition, a series of small changes that occur over long periods of time...but a new study suggests the word 'long' might not belong in the definition." 

Apparently, over the last 12 years, Tasmanian Devils have evolved in response to a sort of infectious cancer spread by biting, which the carnivorous marsupials include in their mating rituals.   The disease appeared in 1996.  "The tumors grow so large and fast that infected animals can no longer eat, so they starve to death.  In some places, devil populations have fallen by as much as 90 percent."

That's a horrible and scary thought on many levels.  90 percent of a population. If things continue at this rate, the Tasmanian Devil could cease to exist before my niece would be old enough to know what they are.  And a tumor that spreads that quickly, what would happen if the disease mutated and infected another species?

At any rate, "before the cancer appeared, virtually all female devils reached sexual maturity at age 2 and produced several litters of young by 5 or 6.  Very few female devils were capable of breeding at age 1."  Unfortunately, due to the cancer, most are dying by age 2 or 3. 

Interestingly, currently the number of devils capable of breeding at age 1 (called "precocious breeding" by scientists) has increased 16-fold.

"University of Tasmania zoologist Menna Jones reported the change in this week's edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.  'We could be seeing evolution occurring before our eyes,' she told the Associated Press.

This speedy evolution could be what saves the Tasmanian Devils from extinction.  Believe in it or not, it is happening.  Call it some other name, that doesn't change what it is.

Go Nature!

9:38 PM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Squash
Category: Life

Lmao, admit it, you just wanted to find out why the hell I'm talking about squash ;)

So, I picked the first two squash out of my garden yesterday.  That makes them the first plants in my garden to fully make food this year (the peppers and tomatoes started earlier, but I've yet to have a tomato or pepper ripen this season...). 

They are yellow crookneck squash, about a foot long apiece, and the kind with the little bumps all over them, and they are good for eating :)  So my guess is we're having stir-fry relatively soon.  Just gotta get the peppers and broccoli to make food... *sigh* that might take a while.

Hmm, and I accidentally ate moldy goji berries the other day.  Eew.  It sucked because the package was sealed and they were "certified yeast and mold free."  I didn't realize that meant they included yeast or mold, free... ugh.  I didn't realize right away because they usually taste and smell funny anyway, but they are good for you.  Damn, eating healthy is bad for your health...

So yesterday was our 1-year anniversary.  Lol, we planned to recreate our first date, you know, do the same things we did that night.  It didn't quite work out that way.  On our first date, we went to Stir Fry and played pool afterwords.  Well, my logic worked like this: playing pool in a dress = bad idea, so I'll buy him stuff and give it to him tonite (monday nite), and I'll dress up for him on Friday when we get to go out and do something special (we haven't quite decided what that is just yet...).

lol

His logic, however, did this:  Hmm, M wears a dress for me on special occasions, and I often feel underdressed, so I'll get dressed up for her before I come pick her up, and give her a present on Fri when we get to go do something special.

lmao

So, imagine the surprise on both sides when he comes to my door in a suit and I'm wearing a pair of Tripp pants and a Disturbed t-shirt and holding out a vase in which I'd arranged flowers I'd bought for him.

LMAO

So I told him I really didn't feel like changing, and told him my reasoning behind not getting dressed up in the first place.  He explained his reasoning, and we had a short laugh, because then we had to run to his house so he could get changed and we could race toward food...

Well, Stir Fry closes at 10.  We pulled up at 9:30, and I remembered that the last few times we'd gone it'd been earlier and we STILL had crappy service, so I didn't want to push it.  So we drove down North Roan St until we found a place to eat.  Ended up at Johnny Carinos, and I think they've changed their policy of using canned chicken, because the food was much better than it had been last time.  Then we thought about playing pool, but decided against it.  Ended up at Books a Million, because they're open until 11 and it was 10:30 or so.

Lol, so the moral of the story is:  Don't make plans you're set on keeping.  Things don't tend to work that way

I think we're going to Asheville this weekend.  My super-nice bosses gave me a 3-day weekend when Wes told them he had Fri off.  :)

And that's what's new.  That, and I'm probably going to the Democrat Headquarters tomorrow, since I have the day off.  Woo-hoo, volunteer work ;)

BTW- anyone who isn't registered to vote should go to his/her local courthouse, where they will get information from you and tell you where your voting place is.  Also, I don't know about other places, but Johnson City has early voting at the Johnson City and Jonesborough courthouses, which is what I plan to do.  The hell with waiting in line all day...

GO VOTE.  or don't complain about the results.

The End

2:17 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

BATMAN
Category: Life

Go see the new Batman movie, The Dark Knight.  The only disappointment is that they cannot ever have another Joker.  Heath Ledger just did such a perfect, beautiful job.  Go see it.

I also saw Brokeback Mountain recently.  Very good movie.


Alright, some of you have asked about my book (and I thank you for the interest).  The basic concept behind it is that the ancient gods have decided to create offspring by adding a piece of themselves to babies at the moment of conception.  This results in what I've dubbed "theocytes" (the="god", cyte= "cell"), people who are part deity. 

The main character is the offspring of Sekhemet, the Egyptian destroyer goddess, who created a theocyte at Ra's bidding.  Ra was worried about what might happen to the world if these new creatures were allowed to run amok, and he wanted someone to keep things under control, at least to some extent.

Different gods, of course, have different reasons for creating these offspring.  Some want power, some just want to see if it can be done, some want to restore glory to their pantheons, etc.

So, that's my book.  There will be magick, action, um...other stuff ;)  There is only one pantheon I won't touch, and I'm sure you guys can figure out which one that is...

Um, more updates:  Little niece-critter is a month and a day old today.  Olivia is so damn cute, too.   Wes and I will be celebrating our one-year anniversary on Monday (woo-hoo!).  And I've had a knot in my shoulder (actually, it takes up half of my upper back ) for two days now.  Oh well, I'll live.

So, that's the excitement here... I have updated :)

1:32 PM - 2 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Ho hum
Category: Life

I'm kind of bored.  Big news, right?

lol.

I want to write, but I know if I work on my book, I'll be at it for at least an hour, and I don't have that kind of time for that right now.  However, I can write on here, and it's not nearly as time-consuming. 

Why is time a factor?  Gotta meet Wes for lunch :)  Lmao, this is quite possibly the most boring blog I've ever written.  Gotta fix that...

I was going to post a small exerpt from my book, but I'm still debating about whether or not I want to do that so soon.  I worked on it last night, and sadly I've only gotten 11 pages done so far.  That's 11 pages, total, not 11 pages last night.  I guess I just want to make sure I make it the best book I can.  I keep having Wes read over what I've written.  You know, to make sure it doesn't suck... 

So far, apparently, so good.  I'm having a bit of a problem deciding where to go next, and how to lead in to and build this next scene, but it'll come to me when it's ready.  At least, I think it will.  It has so far (all 11 pages of it, lmao).  We shall see.  And when I actually HAVE more than a few pages, I'll share some with you guys.

Until then, I'll just keep laughing at myself for thinking I can do this.  And I'll keep doing this...Who knows, maybe I can get a decent piece of literature published.  We shall see.

So, that's my pointless, boring blog about something I almost did, and something I am doing.  Guess I'll go now, lol. 

Currently listening : Indestructible By Disturbed Release date: 2008-06-03

10:38 AM - 3 Comments - 3 Kudos - Add Comment